Not quite Pygmalion. Successful London barrister Gideon catches a grimy female pickpocket dipping into his pocket, then catches her again, this time dipping into someone else's pocket. Her second victim is all for sending her to jail, but Gideon mollifies him with cash he can ill afford, and then demands that she repay her debt by metamorphosing into an elegant lady companion, thus arousing the jealousy of the beautiful debutante he wants to marry.

The unlikely transformation from unwashed pickpocket to stunning society queen is made possible because Lily has received a solid and genteel upbringing before falling on hard times. The story is penned with a light and whimsical touch and, like Ms Long's previous [b:The Runaway Duke|907687|The Runaway Duke|Julie Anne Long|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1179355417s/907687.jpg|892826], contains memorably beautiful lines of prose that had me reaching for my highlighter.

A superlative historical romance that had at least one reader grinning with delight and pleasure. ( )

Enjoyable story of a baron's heir meeting a gently-bred pickpocket and turning her into the toast of the ton. I really liked all of the characters, and the Pygmalion-style plot was well done, but the first half of the book was so slow that I almost gave up.

Wikipedia in English

TO LOVE A THIEF tells the story of Gideon Cole, a brilliant barrister, and Lily Masters, an orphan pickpocket from the slums of St. Giles, and how her transformation into a lady of high society changes both of their lives forever. This longtime reader favorite and nominee for Rita, Holt Medallion, Bookseller's Best and Romantic Times Reviewer's Choice Awards is a full length novel--and as a bonus, includes the first chapter of Julie Anne Long's WHAT I DID FOR A DUKE, selected by Amazon as one of the Best Books of 2011!